JetWorks Leasing and sister company SkyWorks Capital arranged the conversion and lease of a 757-200 purchased by Stratus Ltd. The aircraft will undergo a cargo conversion at Flightstar Aircraft Services using the Precision Conversion STC.
Mexico soon will incorporate IATA's Operational Safety Audit into its civil aviation regulatory requirements for airlines operating to, from and within the country, Minister of Communication and Transport Luiz Tellez announced yesterday. Speaking to the ALTA Airline Leaders Forum in Cancun, Tellez said airlines that successfully complete an IOSA will not have to undergo an annual audit from Mexico's DGAC, as is currently required, but will enjoy an extended interval of three years or longer between inspections.
Air Berlin transported 2.8 million passengers in October, up 11.3% from the year-ago month. Load factor rose 2.5 points to 81.7% and unit revenue fell 0.4% to 4.99 euro cents (7.24 US cents). CFO Ulf Huttmeyer admitted the company has "not yet been able to fully optimize yield management and capacity control in the course of LTU's integration." Separately, AB named dba flight operations head Helmut Weixler as LTU's MD-flight operations and accountable manager. CEO Joachim Hunold also added the title of LTU chairman. He ceded the duties of AB accountable manager to Karl Lotz.
SkyWest Airlines pilots once again rejected overtures from the Air Line Pilots Assn., with 65% of those voting preferring to remain nonunion. "We appreciate our pilots' decision to remain union free and the professionalism they displayed during the campaign," VP-Flight Operations Brad Holt said. "The vote is an endorsement of the relationship that has worked so well throughout our history."
Southwest Airlines yesterday introduced a "business select" fare category that will provide passengers paying more for tickets with guaranteed early boarding, more frequent-flier credits and a free cocktail, a move that is part of the LCC's ongoing effort to alter its traditional single-class service to attract more business travelers.
Schiphol Group appointed Maarten de Groof chief commercial officer effective Feb. 1. Silver Air of the Czech Republic named Steffen Harpoth as its new CEO.
Mubadala Development, Abu Dhabi's government investment firm, became sole shareholder of Gulf Aircraft Maintenance following its acquisition of Gulf Air's 40% stake in the company. It consequently renamed the MRO Abu Dhabi Aircraft Technologies.
EASA, aviation authorities from Scandinavia and Canada and OEMs Bombardier and Goodrich met yesterday in Cologne and concluded that the Oct. 27 incident involving an SAS Q400--the carrier's third--was "not due to a design error and that the airworthiness of the aircraft is maintained." Last week the Danish Investigation Board said the most recent Q400 landing gear incident resulted from an O-ring lodged in the right main gear's actuator.
Lufthansa Technik signed a five-year MRO agreement with bmi and bmibaby covering all base maintenance checks on bmi's 24 A320 family aircraft as well as its three A330s, the recently added BMED fleet of eight A320 family aircraft and bmibaby's 21 737 Classics. Deal is valued in excess of €50 million ($72.6 million). Sabena Technics renewed its contract for line and light maintenance of Thomas Cook Airlines Belgium's six A320s. Initial agreement was signed three years ago and now is extended for an undetermined period.
Canada and Singapore announced an open skies agreement allowing any carrier from either country to operate passenger and cargo flights to any city at any frequency, as well as to codeshare.
Delta Air Lines maintenance arm Delta TechOps signed a 10-year, $1 billion-plus deal with Chromalloy Gas Turbine Corp. that represents "the largest and most significant [PMA] agreement in the airline industry," adds the CFM56-5 to DTO's portfolio and will result in 250 additional engine overhauls, DL announced yesterday.
US FAA announced a new rule "designed to mitigate conditions that put airliners at risk for wire failures, smoke and fire," enhancing safety requirements for design, installation and maintenance and adding new certification standards to address wire degradation and "inadequate" design or maintenance. Manufacturers will have to complete approved instructions for wiring-related maintenance and inspection within two years of the effective date for existing aircraft, with airlines operating those aircraft instructed to complete programs based on those instructions within 39 months.
Big Sky Airlines parent MAIR Holdings reported a $2.5 million loss in the fiscal second quarter ended Sept. 30, unchanged from the year-ago period. Revenue climbed 46.4% to $9.05 million while expenses rose 29.9% to $12.5 million, resulting in a flat operating loss of $3.4 million. Big Sky, which serves 26 cities with 13 Beech 1900Ds as a Delta Connection partner and in codeshare with Northwest Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Horizon Air and US Air, flew 14.8 million RPMs during the quarter, up 63.5%. Capacity rose 28.8% to 28.5 million ASMs, lifting load factor 11 points to 52%.
The EU intends to launch a PNR system similar to the collection procedure applied by the US. Under the plan unveiled yesterday as part of a broader counterterrorism package, the 27 member states would be required to collect 19 fields of data from passengers flying to or from the EU. Data would include the e-mail address and phone number of the passenger, ticket and travel agent information and payment details and would be provided 24 hr. before departure.
Northwest Airlines flew 6.47 billion consolidated RPMs in October, down 0.2% from the year-ago month. Capacity dropped 1.3% to 7.73 billion ASMs and load factor rose 1 point to 83.8%. Air Canada and Jazz flew 4.06 billion RPMs in October, a 2.7% increase from the year-ago month. Capacity rose 2.4% to 5.16 billion ASMs and load factor was up 0.2 point to 78.6%. JetBlue Airways flew 1.99 billion RPMs in October, up 7% from the year-ago month. Capacity climbed 11.1% to 2.52 billion ASMs, dropping load factor 2.9 points to 75.9%.
Airports Council International elected Aeroports de Montreal President and CEO James Cherry chairman for a two-year term. He replaces Ghanem Al Hajri, who held the role on an interim basis following the August retirement of Niels Boserup.
Lufthansa, which is set to take delivery this week of the first of 60 A320 family aircraft to be used on European flights, will feature a new cabin design with increased "usable. . .width which will especially benefit passengers in window seats, giving them more room at shoulder height," the airline said. Also included will be new window surrounds that "make the windows appear larger" and enlarged overhead bins, LH added.
Jordan Airline Training and Simulation signed an agreement with S7 Airlines under which the Russian carrier will send 20 pilots to train on JATS' two A320-200 full flight simulators with JATS instructors ( ATWOnline, Sept. 6). The pilots also will receive safety and emergency training, while one will take a simulator instructor course. S7 ordered 25 A320s at last summer's Paris Air Show ( ATWOnline, June 19).
News from Travel Technology Update: EasyJet will participate in Amadeus and Galileo, becoming the first major European low-fare carrier to sign deals with GDS companies. The carrier said the move is designed to tap into the $90 billion corporate travel market in Europe. EasyJet said it will add a point-of-sale fee to fares booked through the GDSs, ensuring that its Web site "remains our primary distribution channel and fares will always be cheapest when booking direct online."
Finnair Group ground handling subsidiary Northport Oy signed an agreement to sell the entire share capital of its Swedish and Norwegian subsidiaries, Finnhandling AB and Northport Norway AS, to Menzies Aviation. The sale will create a slightly more than €5 million one-time boost to Finnair's fourth-quarter results.
Mesa Air Group appointed VP-Finance William Hoke as interim CFO. He replaces former CFO Peter Murnane, who was terminated after it was revealed that he deleted confidential records related to the carrier's recent legal problems with Hawaiian Airlines ( ATWOnline, Sept 28).
Chinese carriers responded to climbing oil prices by raising fuel surcharges on domestic services 20%-25% from yesterday. The levy on flights of fewer than 800 km. increased to CNY60 ($8.04) from CNY50 per ticket while the fee on flights of 800 km. or more went from CNY80 to CNY100. China raised the domestic price of jet fuel by CNY500 per ton starting Nov. 1, a move that industry insiders said was the catalyst for the surcharge hike. The fourth quarter is considered the domestic low season.
Seven cargo airlines working in conjunction with IATA and freight forwarders initiated e-freight pilot programs on a number of selected trade routes yesterday. The airlines are Air Canada, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, KLM, Martinair, SAS and Singapore Airlines. Cargo on key trade routes connecting the countries represented by the carriers will be processed electronically. "The paper-free era for airfreight begins today," IATA DG and CEO Giovanni Bisignani said.
American Airlines flew 11.53 billion system RPMs in October, up 3.6% from the year-ago month. Capacity fell 0.2% to 14.31 billion ASMs, lifting load factor 3 points to 80.6%. Continental Airlines flew 7.69 billion system RPMs in October, a 6% increase over the year-ago month. Capacity rose 5.7% to 9.68 billion ASMs and load factor improved 0.2 point to 79.5%. Consolidated unit revenue was up an estimated 6%-7% year-over-year.
